Persona: A New Journey
by Shadow Typer97
Summary: Set about 20 years after the events of P4A. The Kirijo Group has stepped up their efforts in their anti-Shadow operations. Enter Natsuki Ichinose, a 2nd year transfer student enrolling in Gesshoku High when strange things start to happen. Will she be able to overcome her fears and use her bonds of friendship to save her new school? Rated T for Action Justice lovers Social Link
1. Chapter 1: Arrival

Chapter 1: Arrival

Natsuki Ichinose squirmed in her seat as the plane flew smoothly. Her fear of heights makes it difficult for her to stay calm when flying especially if it's a 3h flight. She took a deep breath and muttered, "Relax Natsuki. You're almost there, hang on."

After a couple of torturous hours, the plane landed at Mitsuba airport. She felt a lot more comfortable now that the plane had landed and unsteadily got off the plane. She retrieved her luggage and stepped out of the Arrivals Terminal. A young woman waving a hand at her caught her attention. She smiled, half-ran towards her and hugged the woman, "Hitomi-san! It's been a while."

"Look at how much you've grown Natsuki-chan. How's your acrophobia?" Hitomi asked. Natsuki sheepishly grinned, "I don't get panic attacks anymore…. If that's something, hehe."

"Well, cheer up then. It's going to be about an hour's drive to the dorm. Sorry that I can't have over with my workload and all." Hitomi said as she helped Natsuki with her luggage. Natsuki knows that her Aunt is busy with her work; that being the reason why she has to stay at the dorm.

"Oh its ok obasan, I understand," Natsuki said as she placed her luggage into Hitomi's car before entering it herself. The drive was quiet as Natsuki looked out the window at the starry night sky. She liked the calming effect it had on her even though she was afraid of heights. Then she realized the number of policemen and engineers patrolling the streets, "Obasan, why is there so many officers?"

"Ah, that. I actually don't know. Must have something to do with the strange geological activity here," Hitomi replied.

"Strange?" Natsuki inquired.

"There have been strange tremors, cracks forming on the ground. Stuff like that. Been happening since last year or so. Ah, we're here, Gesshoku High dorms. Need help with signing in?" Hitomi asked as she helped Natsuki with her luggage.

"Oh, no need. I'll manage. Thanks for the lift obasan," Natsuki said.

"Its nothing. Well, I hope you fit in Natsuki-chan," Hitomi said as she got in her car. _"That makes the two of us,"_ Natsuki thought as she watched her aunt drive away. She took a deep breath and walked into the dorm. She looked around after she walked in and saw a young girl sitting behind the front desk clutching a sign book. She looked to be about 8 or 9 years old and was wearing a plain white sundress. Natsuki then approached the front desk.

"Hello and welcome to the Gesshoku Dormitory. We have been expecting you, Natsuki Ichinose," the girl said with a smile. Natsuki was taken aback. _"How does she know my name?"_ she thought. The girl giggled at Natsuki's shocked expression and placed the sign book and a pen onto the desk, "Sign here please and you'll be good to go."

"O-ok," Natsuki said as she picked up the pen and flipped to a half-empty page. She signed her name in.

"That will be all. I wish you good luck in your journey," the girl said with the same creepy smile while offering her a key. Natsuki reached out to take it when the girl suddenly grabbed her hand. She was startled with how ice cold the hand was and the strange sensation creeping up he arm. When the girl let go of her hand, Natsuki checked her hand. When she looked up, the girl was gone. Just then she heard footsteps coming from the stairwell of the dorm. Natsuki saw a girl around her age walk down the steps. The girl was wearing an orange t-shirt over a long sleeve red shirt and grey pants. Her hair was strange with its silver-brown color and her eyes were brown. Her expression was tense but she calmed down when she saw Natsuki.

"Oh, I thought you were something else. You must be the new transfer student then," the girls said whilst walking towards Natsuki.

"Yeah, sorry for the delay. Name's Natsuki Ichinose, 2nd year," Nastsuki said as she shook the girl's hand.

"Mine's Rika Sanada, same year. Here let me-" Before Rika could finish her sentence, the front door opened again and a boy walked in. He had messy brown hair with dark brown eyes. He was wearing a navy blue t-shirt under an unzipped grey jacket and jeans and was carrying a briefcase. His expression was blank as he looked at Natsuki for a while before saying, "So she's finally here, a week late huh."

"You can't blame her Kazuto-kun. Ah, Natsuki-san, this here's Kazuto Furukawa and he's the same year as us. Say, Kazuto-kun could you help her with her luggage? Her room's on the 2nd floor all the way at the end of the hallway on the right side," Rika asked.

"Whatever," Kazuto said as he picked up Natsuki's trolley bag and half-carried it up the stairs muttering something. Natsuki was bemused as she watched him.

"Don't mind him, he's actually stronger than he looks and he's always like that. Here, let me show you your room," Rika said as she led the way. They climbed up the stairs, turned right and walked down the hallway. They walked past Kazuto who waved half-heartedly as he walked towards the stairs and went up. Rika stopped at the last door, "Here's your room. Oh wait, your room key…"

"Actually, a little girl gave it to me just now. Speaking of which, who was that girl?" Natsuki asked when she suddenly remembered the girl. Rika shot her a confused look, "I don't know what you're talking about but I see you've got your key already. Well, settle in and we'll see you in the morning then. Goodnight."

"Thanks and good night," Natsuki said as she watched Rika walk down the hall and enter her own room 3 doors away. Natsuki unlocked her room door and walked in. Her room had a bed, a study desk with a table lamp, a small TV and a closet. She placed her bag to one side and started packing her schoolbag and preparing her uniform that consisted of a white blouse, a grey outer uniform, grey skirt and a blue ribbon. After that, switched off the lights, laid on her bed and soon dozed off to sleep. She suddenly heard the sounds of being in a plane flying and jolted awake. She found herself in the cabin of a private jet sitting on a blue seat. She noted that the aisle carpet was also blue and that she wasn't alone.

"Greetings young lady and welcome to the Velvet Room."

* * *

**My first Persona fanfiction. Note: The Persona series and its characters are trademark of Atlus.**


	2. Chapter 2: School

**The Persona series and its characters are trademark of Atlus**

* * *

Chapter 2: School

"W-where am I?" Natsuki asked. This place had a strange calming effect on her even if it is a plane flying. There were 2 men sitting opposite her. The shorter man had a long nose, round eyes, hunched back and he was wearing a black suit. The taller man beside him wore a blue uniform and hat. He had handsome features, white hair, yellow eyes and was holding a book.

"You are in the Velvet Room, a place that exists between dreams and reality. Only those bound by a 'contract' may enter. My name is Igor and I will be your guide for the duration of your journey," the short man said with a smile.

"Journey?" Natsuki asked. She was puzzled, she had hoped for a normal school life yet she is now talking to a strange man in what she guessed to be a private jet.

"You have an interesting destiny ahead of you but only if you can grasp what it is, will you be able to achieve it," Igor cryptically said. This confused Natsuki even more.

"What do you mean?" she asked. Igor chuckled to himself.

"I am not in the position to tell you but remember this; the bonds that you form with people will help you in your journey," Igor said. Natsuki pondered a bit.

"Bonds… You mean-" Natsuki was about to say but Igor raised a hand.

"You will understand in due time. Just like our previous guests. Until we meet again, Natsuki Ichinose," Igor said. Before Natsuki could ask anything, there was a flash of light and she found herself in bed. She quickly sat up and looked around. She checked the clock by her bed and saw that it was about a minute away from ringing. She switched of the alarm and sat for a while thinking.

_"A journey, bonds, destiny? What the hell was that creepy man talking about? I barely have any friends here if Rika even counts,"_ Natsuki thought sighing. She then thought about her friends back in Tokyo, some she knew from childhood and others from her old school. _"If they were here, this 'journey' thing would be a lot easier… Ah, better not think about it too much," _Natsuki thought as she got up, made her bed and got ready for school. As she was about done putting on her uniform, there was a knock on the door.

"Natsuki-san, you up?" a familiar voice asked.

"Oh, yeah. Come in," Natsuki said. The door opened and Rika walked in with her school bag. She was wearing the standard school uniform but instead of the grey outer uniform, she wore a red sweater vest over her blouse. And she had a red band on her arm.

"What's with the vest and the armband?" Natsuki asked.

"Oh this? Its what my dad wore during his highschool days. As for the band, uh….. Its nothing. Come on, I'll show you the school," Rika said as she waited by the door. Natsuki picked up her school bag, "Let's go then."

The two of them walked to school in silence. Natsuki always found it hard to start a conversation. She quickly thought of something, "So uhh, Rika. Is your hair natural?"

_ "Stupid, stupid, stupid! That sounded rude! Brain, why did you fail me?" _Natsuki thought after she realized what she had said. Rika just looked at Natsuki with a bemused expression.

"Oh, my hair's color? Yeah, it is. My dad had silver hair while my mom had brown. It kinda came together I guess," Rika said with a smile. Her answer calmed Natsuki down a bit. She was glad that Rika took the question lightly.

"Well, here's the school," Rika said pointing at the white building in front of them. Natsuki looked at it. It reminded her of her old school in Tokyo but this was a lot bigger.

"Wow, it huge… I could get lost here," Natsuki said. Rika giggled and was about to say something when a voice said something.

"Its better if you don't. There are some places in this school you don't want to get lost in," the voice said. The girls turned around to see Kazuto standing there. He was wearing the school uniform but wore an unzipped grey jacket instead of the standard outer uniform. He was carrying a rifle bag along with his school bag.

"Kazuto-kun, you shouldn't be so mean to Natsuki-san on her first day," Rika said defensively. Kazuto smiled a bit.

"Just teasing around and we're only supposed to wear the band during meetings Rika-chan," Kazuto said putting slight emphasis on the 'chan'.

"I just wear it out of habit," Rika shot back. Natsuki stood there looking at the two argue. It reminded her of her old friends a bit.

"Uh, Rika-san. Aren't you going to show me around?" Natsuki asked, trying to break up the argument. Rika stared down Kazuto for a while before turning away.

"You're right Natsuki-san, let's go," Rika said pulling Natsuki along. Natsuki saw Kazuto shaking his head before walking off towards another entrance.

"Are you two friends?" Natsuki asked Rika as they walked along the school's hallway.

"Yeah. We knew each other since junior high. He's in 2-A by the way," Rika said. Natsuki wondered why she added that last bit about him.

"Why was he carrying that long bag?" Natsuki asked, trying to prolong the conversation.

"He keeps his air rifle in it. He's part of the school's air rifle club," Rika answered. Natsuki looked around at the classrooms before Rika stopped at class 2-C.

Well, here we are. I checked the register yesterday and found out that we're in the same class," Rika said. Natsuki was about to thank her when a voice called out.

"Sanada-san, is she the transfer student?" the voice said. Natsuki turned around and saw a teacher walking towards them. He had a stern but kind expression, grayish-black hair and was wearing a simple brown suit.

"Oh, good morning Odagiri-sensei. Yup, this is her, Natsuki Ichinose. Natsuki-san, this is Odagiri-sensei, our homeroom teacher. He teaches math," Rika said introducing him to Natsuki. Natsuki bowed and greeted him.

"Well Ichinose-san, why don't you wait here for a while," Mr. Odagari said before entering class. Rika manage to say good luck to Natsuki before she herself entered. Natsuki stood there awkwardly as other students walked past looking at her, whispering to their friends. Natsuki ignored them and started thinking, _"Bonds... I wonder if I'll make a few here."_ The class door then opened.

"Ichinose-san, you can come in now," Mr. Odagiri said. Natsuki took a deep breath and walked in. The students in the class looked at her as she stood at the front of the class.

"Class, this is the transfer student who will be joining us today. Why don't you introduce yourself," Mr. Odagiri said.

"H-hello, my name is Natsuki Ichinose. It's a pleasure to meet you all," Natsuki said with a short bow. Natusuki looked around at her classmates and saw Rika seated in the second row. Her other classmates seemed interested in her. After all, she is a week late.

"Umm, Odagiri-sensei. Can she sit beside me, the spot's empty," a girl with short hair asked from her seat.

"Ok, then. I hope you treat her nicely Hirakawa-san. Go on Ichinose-san," Mr. Odagiri said gesturing her to go to her seat. Natsuki walked to her new seat and sat down beside the girl.

"Hey new kid. I'm Chinatsu Hirakawa, nice to meet you," the girl said, extending her hand. The girl had teal hair with grey eyes and is wearing the proper school uniform.

"Hi," Natsuki replied, shaking Chinatsu's hand. She had a feeling that Chinatsu was a nice and friendly person.

"You two, quiet down," Mr. Odagiri said. The two girls stopped talking and started paying attention to the lesson.

_"At least things here are normal,"_ Natsuki thought as she took down some notes.

* * *

**Natsuki's stats. **

**KNOWLEDGE: Informed**  
**COURAGE: Average**  
**UNDERSTANDING: Basic**  
**DILIGENCE: Callow**

**Social Links Established: None**


	3. Chapter 3: Turn of Events

The Persona series and its characters are trademark of Atlus

* * *

Chapter 3: Turn of Events

AFTER SCHOOL

"Ok class, that concludes today's lesson," Mrs. Kotone, their literature teacher said. Natsuki took down the last of the notes, her first day of school finally over. She closed her notebook and turned to Chinatsu who had stood up, stretching. Before Natsuki could say anything, Chinatsu turned to her with a cheeky grin.

"So, I saw Kazuto-kun talking to you this morning. What did you do to attract him huh?" Chinatsu teased. Natsuki blushed at this statement.

"It's not like that. I just met him yesterday and he was talking with Rika-san. I just happened to be there," Natsuki rebutted. She left out a few details about how Kazuto did talk to her first and that Rika had stepped in to tell him to stop teasing her. Upon hearing Natsuki's rebuttal, Chinatsu seemed disappointed.

"You know, I swear that those two are like a married couple. I mean, she's the only girl he ever talks to outside school and they argue a lot but the next day, you'll see them together again. I wonder what Kazuto-kun sees in her," Chinatsu said packing up her bag. Natsuki was about to say something when Rika appeared behind Chinatsu. She had a rather evil grin and was cracking her knuckles.

"I dare you to say that again Chinatsu," she threatened. Chinatsu didn't see unfazed and smiled.

"If you're angry it means that I'm right. Right, Natsuki-san?" Chinatsu teased while nudging Natsuki's shoulder. Natsuki in turn felt conflicted in who to support, a friend she just made or the first person she met who can be considered her friend.

_"What the hell am I supposed to do? If I take one side the other will… and vise-versa!" _she taught desperately. Meanwhile the two girls were still staring each other down while their classmates watched. Then a boy stepped between the two.

"Now, now ladies. Would you kindly stop fighting? There's plenty of Minato to go around," the boy said. This caused the girls to stop fighting, stare at the boy and then proceeded to punch his gut. This shocked Natsuki who looked around but her classmates seem to not care about the boy.

"Yeah, plenty of him to punch," Rika said. The boy then got up wincing but with a smile.

"Wow, you've gotten better Rika-tan. As for Natsu-tan, not much but it still hurts," the boy said. He then realized Natsuki watching and immediately straightened up. He smoothened his uniform and strode over to her.

"And this beauty here must be Natsuki Ichinose right? I'm Minato Fujita, your future boyfriend," Minato said smoothly. Natsuki was surprised and took a while to study him. He was wearing the school uniform but with the outer uniform unbuttoned. He had brown eyes and similarly colored hair that was messily combed. She could easily tell that the boy was joking.

"I'm sorry Minato-kun but I don't think so. You could still be my friend though," was Natsuki's reply.

"Ohh! Friend zoned on your first try," Chinatsu said. The boy seemed heartbroken.

"Oh, my dear. Your words have pierced my heart. Shall I be forever cursed to wonder this earth alone unt- ow!" he screamed as Rika pulled his ear. Natsuki looked at him amused.

"Oh, stop it you. Don't mind him Natsuki-san, he's always like this," Rika said letting go of Minato's ear. Minato massaged his ear.

"Ah, well. At least I wasn't told to go away. Unlike Chinatsu here during our first year here," Minato said smiling. Rika and Chinatsu laughed at Minato's reply as he picked up his stuff and walked out the classroom. Before the door closed, Kazuto entered the class, looking at Minato as he walked out.

"Pulled his ear again Rika?" he asked. Rika then nodded, still laughing.

"Rika, I need to speak with you. Privately. Bring your stuff," Kazuto said before leaving. Rika quickly picked up her stuff and left. Chinatsu nudged Natsuki's shoulder and gestured toward's Rika. Natsuki caught on and kicked Chinatsu's shin.

"Hey, what was that for?!" Chinatsu demanded.

"I know what you meant and that was mean. Come on, let's go. I still need to get used to the school right? And Rika's gone so I guess you could show me around?" Natsuki hinted and Chinatsu smiled.

"Follow me then Mademoiselle," she said leading the way. She brought Natsuki around the school showing her the various facilities such as the music room, home economics room and the science labs. There, they witnessed a minor mishap causing said lab to be engulfed in a blue smoke and its occupants having been stained blue as a result. Just as Chinatsu finished her tour over by the oldest wing of the school, there was a minor tremor. Natsuki was alarmed and was caught off guard and fell. Chinatsu was able to keep her balance and helped her up.

"What just happened?" Natsuki asked. She was also shocked at the fact that Chinatsu seemed calm.

"It was just a minor tremor. You've probably heard of the strange geological activity here right. Its already considered normal here," Chinatsu replied. Natsuki was still shaken but before she could ask anything else, both of them felt a dramatic drop in the temperature. It was cold to the point that their breath fogged up.

"W-what's going o-on?" Chinatsu asked shivering. Natsuki could only shake her head at her question. They then heard shouting and something like metal clashing from around the corner of the old wing. Natsuki's curiosity got the better of her and she walked down the corridor, ignoring Chinatsu's advice that they shouldn't go there. The sounds got even louder and she could hear someone shouting, a very familiar voice.

"It's a total breach, Kazuto! The Shadows are getting through the fissure!" the female voice shouted. _"That sounds like Rika-san! Could it be?" _Natsuki thought. The girls then heard a gunshot.

"Valkyrie! Skewer!" the voice shouted. There was a sound like rushing wind, a squelchy noise and then a strange sound that caused shivers to run up Natsuki's spine. At this point, Chinatsu was close to a full blown panic attack.

"Come on Natsuki-san, lets get out of here," Chinatsu pleaded but Natsuki ignored her. Just as she was about to go around the corner, she heard someone shout.

"Rika look out!" a familiar voice shouted. Before Natsuki could even guess, there was a loud smack and Kazuto was sent flying against the wall. His body slid to the floor and he was trying to sit up when the girls rushed forward to help him.

"Kazuto-san! Are you ok!?" Natsuki desperately asked as she and Chinatsu helped him sit up. His face showed a pained expression and he looked dazed. The naginata he was holding fell with a clatter as he lost his grip on it.

Just in front of them, Rika was fighting what appears to be a group of dark globs. The globs looked like well, globs with arms and a mask where the face should be. She was slashing at them with knives and stood with a boxer's stance. Just as she was about to slash one of the globs, it smacked the knives out of Rika's hands and swiped at her. She tried to dodge the attack but tripped and fell back. Rika then started panicking.

"S-stay back! G-go away!" she screamed as she started scooting backwards while the globs slowly oozed forward. Natsuki then felt something metallic being pushed into her hands. She looked and saw that Kazuto was trying to hand her what seemed to be a gun. Natsuki took it; the gun was rather light with the word SEES imprinted onto it.

She then saw, behind the globs, the strange little girl standing there with the same creepy smile on her face. The girl raised her hand and pointed at her temple with her index finger. The girl mouthed, **"Can you do it?"** Natsuki understood and stood up, raised the gun to her head. She hesitated a bit and steadied herself.

"Per-so-na." ***BANG***** **the gun went off. She suddenly found herself surrounded by a blue aura. Natsuki and Rika were shouting something but she couldn't hear them as a calming female voice spoke in her head.

_**"I am thou… Thou art I… From the sea of thy soul, I come... I am Sif, loyal shield maiden of Asgard…"**_ Then a figure appeared above Natsuki; a tall armor-clad helmeted woman with a flowing cape and long golden hair. It also carried a shield and sword. The globs at first backed away but soon surged forward. Natsuki was ready this time.

"Sif, cleave!" the figure unsheathed its sword and charged at one of the globs and sliced it in half. The two parts evaporated into a dark gas before vanishing completely. Natsuki grinned as she issued more commands.

"Cleave!" the figure slashed at another one of the globs. The rest of the globs started retreating back into the crack.

"I'm not letting you get away! Garu!" the figure pointed its sword at one of the globs and a gust of wind literally blew it apart.

"Again!" the figure sent more gusts of wind and soon enough, the last of the remaining globs had either retreated or were defeated by Natsuki. The figure dissipated and Natsuki turned to the others. Rika and Chinatsu were amazed while Kazuto just smiled.

"I knew it. You are one too," Kazuto said. Natsuki smiled, she suddenly felt really tired and her head was spinning. Chinatsu was looking worried.

"Natsuki are you o-" Natsuki didn't hear the rest of it as she suddenly collapsed onto the floor.

* * *

**Natsuki's stats.**

**KNOWLEDGE: Informed**  
**COURAGE: Average**  
**UNDERSTANDING: Basic**  
**DILIGENCE: Callow**

**Social Links Established: None**

**Wow, 3 chapters in 3 days. Don't get used to it though, I'm on holiday and school's gonna start soon. Well, enjoy.**


	4. Chapter 4: Awakening

**The Persona series and its characters are trademark of Atlus**

* * *

Chapter 4:Awakening

?

"Ah, my head…" Natsuki muttered as she stirred from unconsciousness. She looked around and saw the familiar blue color. She sat up and found herself face-to-face with Igor again. This time, the young man in blue wasn't there.

"What the- how the hell am I here again?" Natsuki asked. The last thing she remembered was Chinatsu asking her something before blacking out. The others!

"My friends! Are they ok?!" Natsuki desperately asked. Igor simply chuckled.

"They are fine. It is you that you should be worried about. You have finally awakened the power within you. It took a mental strain on your body and you passed out. Your friends have bought you to your dorm to let you rest. Now is just the matter of when you are going to wake up," Igor replied.

_"Yeesh, creepy much?"_ Natsuki thought.

"So, how do I wake up? I mean, from here," she asked. Igor simply pointed towards the plane's door.

"Just open that door and walkthrough it," Igor said. Natsuki seemed unnerved. She got up from her seat, bid Igor goodbye and stood in front of the door. She took a deep breath and opened the door. There was a flash and then all was dark.

EVENING

Natsuki could feel the soft covers of her bed and the pillow under her head. She also heard someone talking in her room.

"-sure that she's alright. Call either Rika or me when she wakes up ok? We'll explain everything when she's up," a boy's voice was heard saying.

"Oh alright, you guys have a ton of explaining to do when she's up!" a girl's voice shouted in reply. Natsuki recognized the voice. She slowly opened her eyes and sat up in bed. She turned towards her room door and say Chinatsu closing the door, muttering. When she turned around to see Natsuki sitting up, she gasped and rushed up to her friend.

"Nasuki! You're up, thank goodness," Chinatsu said with relief. Natsuki smiled.

"Yeah, I just feel slightly dizzy that's all," Natsuki replied. Chinatsu didn't seem to believe her and headed to the door.

"I'm going to get Kazuto-kun and Rika-san here. Do not get out of that bed," Chinatsu said firmly before she left. Leaving a very confused yet touched Natsuki. She wondered how worried she had made the others feel as she got out of bed and stretched. Then a slightly familiar voice spoke in her head.

_**"Art thou feeling better Natsuki-sama?"**_ the voice asked. Natsuki quickly looked around her room.

"Who's there?" she called out. When no reply came, she tried something else.

_"Who's in here?"_ she thought.

_**"I am sorry. I must have startled thee. I am Sif, loyal shield mai-"**_ the voice replied before being cut off or by Natsuki.

_"Shield maiden of Asgard. Yeah, I got that from your sudden appearance when I shot that gun. Who or what are you anyway?" _Natsuki asked (or thought).

_**"I am thy persona, thine other self," **_the voice replied. Natsuki's attention was now fully focused on her persona.

_"Like a conscience? And why are you using Japanese honorifics anyway?. I never heard of a Shinto goddess named Sif before,"_ Natsuki further inquired.

_**"I am merely thy other self. A projection of thy mental image,"**_ the voice replied with a hint of amusement. Apparently, her persona found her questioning to be amusing. Natsuki was about to ask more questions when her dorm room burst open. Chinatsu, Rika and Kazuto rushed into Natsuki's room. Rika ran over and hugged Natsuki making the receiver blush. Natsuki had never been hugged by another girl before but she could tell that it was from relief.

"Oh thank god. I would kill myself if you didn't wake up," Rika tearfully said, not letting a bemused Natsuki go from her embrace. Chinatsu seemed impatient while Kazuto just had the same neutral expression.

"Rika I'm fine, really," Natusuki said gently pushing Rika. Rika then released her from her hug and Natsuki could see the tears, which Rika quickly wiped away. Natsuki just smiled and this seemed to cheer Rika up.

"Honestly Rika. Its like as if you've never seen someone awaken their Persona before," Kazuto said. Rika shot him a glare and Chinatsu made an impatient noise.

"Aren't you two going to explain something?!" Chinatsu exclaimed. This made Rika and Kazuto stop their glaring contest and Rika seemed rather uncomfortable.

"Let's see… Where to even start… Kazuto-kun help me out here," Rika said while thinking hard. Kazuto just sighed before starting.

"Ok then. First off, Rika-san and I are actually part of a group. You may know it as the newly formed School Safety Patrol, which is in charge of reporting any damage caused by the tremors. You've heard about the strange tremors here right Natsuki-san?" Kazuto said. Natsuki thought back and remembered the car ride. She nodded and Kazuto continued.

"That's actually just a cover. We're actually a group of Persona users under orders from the Kirijo Group to help suppress Shadow activity here," this caused Chinatsu to ask.

"So those 'things' just now are Shadows and by Kirijo Group as in the one headed by Mitsuru Kirijo?" she asked. Kazuto nodded. Natsuki had heard of the Kirijo Group before but she never knew the name of its leader.

"So, do you guys take orders from her directly or-" Natsuki wanted to ask when her dorm door opened and a tall man walked in.

"They actually answer to me. Officer Sanada at your service but you can call me Akihiko," the man said walking in. Rika seemed to perk up a bit as she stood up and hug the man briefly.

"Oh dad, you should have said you were coming. Natsuki-san, this is my dad and club supervisor," Rika introduced. Natsuki shook Akihiko's hand, taking notice of his strong grip. Akihiko was wearing a suit and a pair of rather worn leather gloves. Natsuki also noted the whitish silver color of his hair and came to the conclusion that Rika got the brownish part of her hair from her mother.

"So, I was told that you've awakened your Persona. Rika, how long was she out? Did Hirakawa-san awakened hers too?" Akihiko asked.

"About 15-20 minutes or so and no, why?" Rika replied wondering where this was going. Chinatsu seemed left out and Natsuki nudged her gently while tell her not to worry.

"Hmm… I see. Well Kazuto, get Ichinose-san her own Evoker and get one for Hirakawa-san too. If she does have a Persona, she would remember the Shadow attack but then again, she might be just like Akira-san," Akihiko said after listening to what Rika had to say. Chinatsu and Natsuki looked at each other in confusion and Kazuto was writing something in a little blue notebook he took out of his pocket.

"Umm… What's an Evoker?" Chinatsu asked.

"It's the pistol thing Natsuki-san used just now," Rika replied putting 2 fingers to her head to visualize it. Chinatsu seemed taken aback.

"Chottomate kudasai, you're actually giving us guns?!" Chinatsu exclaimed. Akihiko chuckled.

"They're not actual guns but similar. Anyway, meet Kazuto and Rika after-school on Friday outside your class. They're going to show you two a few thing that must be kept absolutely secret. Got it?" Akihiko said looking at the two girls. Natsuki and Chinatsu nodded.

"Well, I gotta go. Lots of things to do at the station and Rika, I need the reports for what happened earlier. Kazuto, the evidence guys at the station aren't happy that you took the pictures of last week's crime scene yesterday. I told you to ask for copies," Akihiko said as he left the room. Kazuto just nodded while the girls bid him goodbye. When the door closed, Natsuki spoke up.

"What did he mean by crime scene photos Kazuto-kun?" Natsuki asked before Kazuto could leave. He stopped and without turning, replied.

"I work as a Junior Detective. Something I got from my dad who used to work in the police force," he replied. Natsuki seemed impressed, he reminded him of a similar former Junior Detective from Inaba. She wanted to ask more things but Kazuto quickly left the room. Rika just giggled.

"I wouldn't want probe too deeply into his private life if I were you," Rika teasingly said as she too left the room leaving Natsuki and Chinatsu alone. The two girls stood around awkwardly.

"So um… Wanna go out for dinner? I know this great ramen joint not far from here," Chinatsu offered. Natsuki happily nodded. After all the excitement just now, she was starting to feel hungry.

"As long as it's your treat," Natsuki said as the two of them left her room.

* * *

**Natsuki's stats.**

**KNOWLEDGE: Informed**  
**COURAGE: Reliable (LVL UP)**  
**UNDERSTANDING: Basic**  
**DILIGENCE: Callow**

**Social Links Established: None**

* * *

**Well, how about it? Finally introduced Akihiko to the scene and our dear Natsuki had awakened her Persona, Sif of the Fool Arcana. Sorry for the delay, had a busy week after the school break with EXAMS and whatnot. Anyway, leave your reviews! Thank you! **


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